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Status

EPA reviewed the existing environmental information and determined that the environmental indicators for human health and groundwater migration have been met in March 2013. These environmental indicator determinations have been posted to this website.

Facility Description

The Corning State College Picture Tube Plant is an approximately 96-acre property where glass blanks for fabrication into cathode ray tubes have been produced since May 13, 1967. The State College facility was closed on June 27, 2003. Corning has been working with Act 2 for the site Closure. PADEP approved Coming's Act 2 Report and provided relief of liability on January 8, 2007. Environmental covenants restricting land and groundwater use have not been recorded for the entire site.

The site is currently owned by Dale Summit Acquisitions, L.P., and has been re-named Summit Park. The property is being used for light industry, warehousing and office space. Currently, there are no engineering controls requiring postremediation inspection and care. A deed notice is in place, restricting future land use to nonresidentia1 in all portions of the remediation area where the residential Statewide Health Standards for arsenic was not attained. A post-remediation care plan consists of a requirement for the property owner to submit notification to the Department if there is any planned change to the deed notice restriction or change from nonresidential to residential use within the remediation area.

Corning maintained three glass melting tanks to produce molten glass used to manufacture panels and funnels. A controlled flow of molten glass was continuously drained and a portion of the molten glass was directed into molds. The rest of the molten glass flow was directed to the basement, also referred to as the “Hot End Cave.” In this area the waste glass (cullet) was cooled with water and eventually returned to the glass tanks. The formed funnels and panels were passed through lehr annealing furnaces. These furnaces provided controlled cooling which improved the glass characteristics. Following annealing, the glass was finished with various abrasive slurries.

A metal-bearing glass cullet was used in the manufacturing process and caused shallow soil contamination near the industrial areas over portions of a 48-acre area immediately surrounding the plant. The primary contaminants were found to be lead, arsenic, barium and strontium.

Soil remediation excavation was conducted in several areas. In all, 4,976 tons of contaminated soil were disposed. All remediated soil areas attained the residential MSCs for the target constituents lead and barium, attained the nonresidential MSCs for the target constituent arsenic, and attained EPA’s industrial soil standard for strontium.

Transport of constituents via groundwater was found to be negligible as only strontium was detected slightly above health-based levels in groundwater at one well. Strontium is relatively immobile in the environment and is not expected to migrate beyond its current location. The source of strontium in soil was localized and removed during site cleanup. Groundwater is not used for potable purposes on site.

In March 1995 Coming entered into a Consent Order and Agreement to address sediment contamination within a drainage channel (which is an NPDES outfall) to Logan Branch as well as the area along Logan Branch to the Pleasant Gap Hatchery. Coming installed two sediment collection structures for long-term monitoring and removal. Coming is required to clean out the basins when significant sediment accumulation is measured. As the facility is no actively using lead-contaminated materials and site soils have been remediated to below health-based levels for lead, lead-contaminated sediments are not expected to accumulate in the collection structures.

The permitted, closed construction and demolition landfill at the facility is located on approximately 4.3 acres at the eastern end of the site. During November 1987, PADER (now PADEP) approved the closure of a portion of the landfill used to dispose excavation materials for a plant expansion. On May 16, 2006, PADEP provided a letter of Final Closure
Certification, stating that no further remedial action or other activity is necessary, provided compliance with the land-use plan submitted by Coming on July 21, 2005. This land-use plan proposes the area of the landfill be used only for noninvasive open area or athletic play fields. Only shallow root vegetation will be used, in order to keep the integrity of the soil cover and underlying material.

Routine maintenance and repairs may be needed at the landfill cover soils or vegetation in accordance with an approved post-closure land use plan.